Lawrie Quinn
Encyclopedia
Lawrence William Quinn is a Labour
politician in England
.
. At Hatfield Polytechnic
, he gained a BSc
in civil engineering
in 1979.
Prior to his election to Parliament, he was a civil engineer
with British Rail
(1979–94) and Railtrack
London North-East (1994-7), and a member of North Yorkshire County Council from 1989-93.
for Scarborough and Whitby for two terms until being ousted by Conservative candidate Robert Goodwill
in the United Kingdom general election of 2005. Lawrie lost the seat by 1,245 votes. It has been suggested that votes for the local Liberal Democrat candidate, the Iraq war, and negative feeling towards Tony Blair
(who visited Scarborough the day before polling day to consolidate support) resulted in the marginal loss.
He was unexpectedly elected to Parliament in the 1997 General Election
, as part of the Labour landslide election victory while he was not really expecting to win a normally Conservative
seat which he retained in the 2001 General Election
, and is a member of the Fabian Society
.
Since losing his seat he has returned to engineering, working as Tube Lines New Works Delivery Manager on secondment from Bechtel(2005 until 2007) then as the Rail Projects Delivery Manager for Bechtel based in London.
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Early life
He went to Pennine Way primary school in Harraby and Harraby Comprehensive School (now called North Cumbria Technology College NCTC) on Edgehill Road in CarlisleCity of Carlisle
The City of Carlisle is a local government district of Cumbria, England, with the status of a city and non-metropolitan district. It is named after its largest settlement, Carlisle, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Brampton and Longtown, as well as outlying villages...
. At Hatfield Polytechnic
University of Hertfordshire
The University of Hertfordshire is a new university based largely in Hatfield, in the county of Hertfordshire, England, from which the university takes its name. It has more than 27,500 students, over 2500 staff, with a turnover of over £181m...
, he gained a BSc
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
in 1979.
Prior to his election to Parliament, he was a civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
with British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
(1979–94) and Railtrack
Railtrack
Railtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
London North-East (1994-7), and a member of North Yorkshire County Council from 1989-93.
Parliamentary career
He was Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Scarborough and Whitby for two terms until being ousted by Conservative candidate Robert Goodwill
Robert Goodwill
Robert Goodwill is a British farmer and Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Scarborough and Whitby and a former Member of the European Parliament .-Early life:...
in the United Kingdom general election of 2005. Lawrie lost the seat by 1,245 votes. It has been suggested that votes for the local Liberal Democrat candidate, the Iraq war, and negative feeling towards Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
(who visited Scarborough the day before polling day to consolidate support) resulted in the marginal loss.
He was unexpectedly elected to Parliament in the 1997 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, as part of the Labour landslide election victory while he was not really expecting to win a normally Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
seat which he retained in the 2001 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
, and is a member of the Fabian Society
Fabian Society
The Fabian Society is a British socialist movement, whose purpose is to advance the principles of democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist, rather than revolutionary, means. It is best known for its initial ground-breaking work beginning late in the 19th century and continuing up to World...
.
Since losing his seat he has returned to engineering, working as Tube Lines New Works Delivery Manager on secondment from Bechtel(2005 until 2007) then as the Rail Projects Delivery Manager for Bechtel based in London.